Objective

The prevalence of anxiety and depressive disorders in people of South Asian origin in the UK is not accurately known.

Method

A population-based study of UK residents from the Indian subcontinent was screened for anxiety and depressive disorders with the Self-Rating Questionnaire (SRQ) and for life events using the brief list of threatening life events.

Similar measures were administered to siblings in India.

Results

The UK sample included 223 Sikhs, 100 Hindus and 49 Muslims.

Elevated SRQ scores were recorded in 5%, 13% and 23%, respectively, of men from these groups and in 16%, 27% and 57%, respectively, of females.

Subjects reporting one or more threatening life events (most commonly unemployment and financial problems) also had raised SRQ scores.

A total of 117 siblings in India reported similar SRQ scores to their index subjects in the UK, but reported more threatening life events, notably deaths and illness in the family and financial problems.